It's still summer. We're still lazy – unless we don't have time to be – and we still need a nudge to get our brains out of idle when we're facing those blank computer pages. In the dog days, it's always good to sit there with a cold drink and let your mind wander. Letting your mind wander creatively is one of the desirable abilities of a writer, no matter what his/her specialty is. Last week, I suggested that one way of creative mind-wandering was to try out a mash-up, just for fun. This week, I'm going to suggest something that I hope will be enjoyable for you, as well as making the folks behind Create's August Challenge happy with us at the Post.

Create wants us to think about 'the soundtrack of our lives'. Now, that's not too tall an order. It would be a very poor sort of person who didn't listen to some kind of music. As Shakespeare said,

The man that hath no music in himself,

Nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds,

Is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils.

The motions of his spirit are dull as night,

And his affections dark as Erebus.

Let no such man be trusted. Mark the music   –   The Merchant of Venice

Now, since we're not that kind of guy – and even dictators like music – we should all be up for one of these little exercises. Since I thought it might be boring if we just made playlists, and it's probably too hot for Guide Entries on your favourite rock stars, I thought we'd noodle around with some fun ways to incorporate music into our writing. Don't let the word 'exercise' bother you: you won't have to get up, just mash a few buttons, as they say in my neighbourhood.

Exercise 1: Musical References

Have you ever noticed how cleverly some television/film directors work music into their stories? Sometimes the music is just part of the soundtrack, setting the mood. That's called 'non-diagetic music'. Sometimes, it's actually in the story, as when a character gets into a car and turns on the radio. People call that kind of music 'diagetic' – it means that the characters in the story can hear it as well as you.

A television director who uses non-diagetic music magnificently, of course, is Matt Weiner of Mad Men. Often, his closing song hits the viewer like a revelation, illuminating the action of the previous hour. Occasionally, of course, Weiner crosses over into the diagetic with his closing music – as when the main character leans back and listens to a record as the scene fades to credits, but the song keeps playing over those credits, inviting us to ponder the words…

Okay, so make your own diagetic soundtrack.

1. Make a list of songs. Songs you like, songs you hate, songs from a particular time and place, songs from everywhere…let your imagination run wild.
2. Think of a small group of characters. Two will do. Figure out where they are.
3. Write a short-short story about these characters. But use all your songs diagetically. Either they play the songs on the radio, stereo, Victrola, whatever, or they sing them, or play them on the piano, xylophone, Venusian ultraphone, or didgeridoo.
4. Integrate the songs into the plot someway. Or go hog wild and have the music be hilariously inappropriate.

Exercise 2: A Musical Story

We've done this before, but it's a goody.

1. Pick a song. Any song. As long as it has lyrics.
2. Make up a story that tells the tale of the song, or go all out...
3. …and make the story mock the song. Or put in an ironic twist.

Exercise 3: Poetry Lovers' Special

'When music and sweet poetry agree…' Or not.

1. Make a list of songs with a unifying theme: Love. Hate. Hallucinogenic mushrooms. Breaking up, if you're a country fan.
2. Write a poem using only these song lyrics.
3. If you picked country songs, this will be easy.

These exercises shouldn't be too much work. If they are, you're probably working too hard. The idea is just to get the juices flowing, and have a little fun. You remember fun, don't you? It's what all those kids appear to be having when they play under the sprinkler.

If you manage to tickle your own fancy enough, consider putting your efforts in the comment space below (or a link). We'd love to read them.

Just as soon as we go top off this lemonade…

Writing Right with Dmitri Archive

Dmitri Gheorgheni

19.08.13 Front Page

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